Mineral concentration



memes Mar. 26, 1935 l g 1,996,021

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE m tfi imms American Agricultural Chemical Company, Newark, N. 1., a corporation of Delaware No Drawing. Application September 21, 1931, Serial No. 564,252. Renewed August 18, 1934 12 Claims. (01. Zia-l) This invention relates to mineral. concentranature of lead oxide (PbO), may be used, satistion, and more particularly to the concentration factory results eing ain f r mp y. of phosphate-bearing materials. Such materials treating bone-oil with about 1% of its weight include, for example, ores of the nature of apaof such alkali. This treatment, which ay 5 tlte, found in Florida, and phosphorite, and likesirably be performed preliminary to further use 5 wise mixtures which comprise sand or the like of the bone-oil in a concentration process, prosilicious material and tri-calcium phosphate or duces a so-called treated product, having other insoluble phosphates and which are of natmarked advantage r h p pose indicated;

ural occurrence or may be artificially prepared the reaction, which generally efiects a physical 1o bymixing or by precipitation and other chemical thickening of the bone-oil, is believed to be of processes. the nature of a partial hydrolysis and/or a poly- In the concentration of ores and the like, such merization of that material, rather an a l as in the separation of minerals from gangue, ification or the like.

which is chiefly silica, by wetting one constitue Application of the bone-oil, in the crude or out and not the other, an important aspect is the the treated form, directly to the phosphate ma- 15 finding of an agent to eifect such wetting suitterial for separation purposes affords a. satisably for the particular mineral, or class of ores factory resulting phosphati'c concentrate; it has, or minerals involved. Where sulfides are to be however, also been found that a desirably imseparated from gangue, this problem is relatively proved action may be had by the use of amateeasy. For example, in the case of silver, copper, rial of the nature of a basic soluble sulfide, for 20 or even zinc ores a small amount of valuable macooperation with the ore or the like in the conterial is separated from a large amount of genus, eentrationl P c s. This feature of the inventhe amount of concentrating agent required betion may be conveniently carried out, for ing relatively small, so that its cost, if notinmpl as an ear y t i t pr ss, y tr ati ordinately excessive, is not important. In com the phosphatic pulp w th a solution of the sulfide 25 centrating phosphate rock and like materials, which m v l th. say of A h conditions are materially difierent in the respects ondi i ner s dium ulfid s e ir y fi mentioned, and a satisfactory concentrating tive, and s e m f other basic l l agent must be relatively inexpensive. fides, suitable for the purpose, there may be noted Accordingly, as the present invention notably fide f po as i m, moni m, llm' 30 includes among other objects hereinafter apthe like. This conditioning treatment greatly parent or incidental to its practice, both econofacilitates the separation of such material from my and efficiency in mineral concentration, an silica and the like, in hat the c nc n ra in important feature of the invention is directed agent is enabled to exert a more specific action to the provision and use of an inexpensive and on the phosphate so as to increase substantially, 35 thoroughly satisfactory concentrating agent for in the resulting concentrate, the percentage of phosphate separation. Such new concentrating produ t le ir d,w ieh m y f xample agent comprises the material known as bone-oil, bone phosphate of lime (commonly abbreviated a composition commonly produced as a by-prod- B. P. L.)

40 uct in the manufacture of bone black by distilla- It may be here pointed out that such use of 40 tion from bones. a. basic soluble sulfide as a conditioner is un- In its original, or what may be conveniently related to the step in some flotation processes styled, crude form, as produced for example and the like by which oxide ores are sulfurized in the manner stated, this material may be used for conversion to sulfides before flotation; on the with satisfactory results as a wetting or conother hand, the action in the present casein- 45 centrating agent for separating phosphatle minvolves merely an alteration of the surface of the erals. It has further been found, however, that phosphate, to render the action of the conthe beneficial characteristics of a concentrating centrating agent m p fi A r latively agent of the nature of bone-oil are considerably small amount of sulfide conditioner may conimproved by the use of a suitable treating reveniently be used, and it is believed that there 50 agent, conveniently a base of inorganicnature. is no substantial conversion of anything into Among such reagents, materials conveniently fi h eventually resulting concentrate classed as alkalis including sodium hydroxide, ing phosphate rather than sulfide material. It potassium, hydroxide, sodium carbonate, lime may also be noted that the use of a conditioner (CaO) and including as well, substances or the of the character described is of peculiar ad- 55 vantam for purposes of economy; it has been found, for example, that the amoimt of boneoil required to concentrate a given quantity of phosphate ore or the like is materially reduced by effecting treatment with such a conditioner, and that likewbe the recovery of phosphate may be substantially increased by the conditioning treatment.

For concentrating phosphatematerials prepared, for example, as a pulp or in equivalent form .of desired fineness, the separation step of the invention may be performedin any suitable concentration apparatus; any concentrating table, such for instance as the Wilfiey type, may advantageomly be used, or a standard flotation cell, with or without aeration, may be employed.

A suitable Wflfley table is shown, for example, in R. H. Richards and C. E. Locke, Text Book of Ore Dressing (McGraw-Hill Book 0., New York, 1925), at pages 207-213.-

In carrying out the process, any suitable oil may be used in conjunction with bone-oil to effect a satisfactory concentration, such cooperating oils including, for instance, fuel oil, distillate, lubricating oil, kerosene, and the like. The use of a small amount of pine oil is also beneficial. although not essential. It has further been found that the me of sodium silicate in combination with bone-oil is ad to further the de- As will now be.-understood, the invention is suitable for the concentration of any phosphatic pulp. Desirable results'being had, for instance, with Florida phosphate, which contains approximately 50% B. P. L..- data obtained in the treatmentofsuchmaterialishereusedforpurposeof illustration; it being also understood that any proces capable of out a product con-' tainingoverabout 68% B.P.L.is practicable In the following specific examples, which may servetoillustratesomeofthefeaturesofthe invention, in a manner clear to thou skilled in the art,reference throughout is to parts by weight unless specified.

' Example I ,Sil'IpartsoIthesamerockwereireatedwith miepartofsodiumsulfideinloo'partsofwater, and-tothemixturewereadded3parlsofueated bone-oil,2parhoffueloil,andonepartofpine oil. Themasswastabledand96.6% ofthephosphaterecovered inthe-concentrate, the latter 73.7% B.P.L.

Example III mpartsdthem-meshdebrisweremixed with one part of crude bone-oil, 5 parts of kerosene, and one part of pine oil. After the material has been well mixed, 10 parts of (5%) sodium silicate were added, and the mass was fed to a flotation cell. A small amount of float taken analyzed 65.5% B. P. L.

Example V 300 parts of the same material were mixed in the same manner as set forth in Example IV, except that one part of treated bone-oil was used in lieu of the crude agent. Two concentrates were collected, averaging 74.5% B. P. L. content and representing 57.6% recovery of the phosphate present.

It is to be understood that the invention is not limited to the specific compositions and procedure herein described but can be carried out in other phosphate-bearing concentrate.

2. In the art of concentrating phosphatic materialintheformofapulptoseparatephosphatic from other constituents, the improvement which comprises mixing the phosphatic pulp with a conditioner and with a concentrating agent comprising bone-oil which has been treated with a small amount of an alkali; and thereafter subjectingthe mixture to the concentrating operation and recovering a phosphate-bearing concentrate.

3. In the art of concentrating phosphatic materialintheformof-apulptoseparatephosphatic from other constituents, the improvement which comprises mixing the phosphatic pulp with a concentrating agent bone-oil which hasbeeutreatedwithasmallamolmtofan alkali, and with the petroleum oil, and thereafter subjecting the mixture to the concentrating operation and recovering a phosphate-bearing concentrate. j

4. The process of concentrating phosphatic material, which comprises mixing phosphatic pulp with a basic soluble sulfide and withboneoilasaconcentratingagent,subjectingthemass to concentration operation, and thereby effecting I separation of a phosphate-bearing "5.Intheartofconcentrating.ma-

terialintheform ofapulptoseparatephosphatic' from other constituents, the improvement which comprises mixing the phosphatic pulp with bone- 9 as concentrating agent, 'and mm sub- J tins the mixture to the concentrating operation recovering 3' Wile-b81111) m. trate.

6- The process ofconcentrating ti material, which comprises treating a'phosphate pulpwithabasicsolublesulfidainamountnot thanonepercentoftheweightofpulmsubjecb ingthetrcatedpulptoconcentrationoperation,

1,996,021 and thereby effecting separation of a phosphatebearing concentrate.

7. In a process of concentrating phosphatic material in which a phosphate-bearing concentrate is recovered by concentrating operation to separate phosphatic from other constituents, the step of mixing the phosphatic pulp with bone-oil as a concentrating agent.

8. In. a process of concentrating phosphatic material in which a phosphate-bearing concentrate is recovered by concentrating operation to separate phosphatic from other constituents, the step of mixing the phosphatic pulp with a concentrating agent comprising bone-oil which has been treated with a small amount of an alkali.

9. In a process of concentrating phosphatic material in which a phosphate-bearing concentrate is recovered by concentrating operation to separate phosphatic from other constituents, the steps of treating bone-oil with a small amount of an alkali, and mixing the phosphatic pulp with the treated bone-oil as a concentrating agent.

10. In a process of concentrating phosphatic material in which a phosphate-bearing concentrate is recovered by concentrating operation to separate phosphatic from other constituents, the steps comprising treating the phosphatic pulp with a basic soluble sulfide, and mixing the treated pulp with bone-oil as a concentrating agent.

11. In a process of concentrating phosphatic material in which a phosphate-bearing concentrate is recovered by concentrating operation to separate phosphatic from other constituents, the steps comprising treating the phosphatic pulp with a basic soluble sulfide, and mixing the the treated pulp with a concentrating agent comprising bone-oil which has been treated with a small amount of an alkali.

12. As a concentrating agent for phosphatic material, bone-oil treated with a small amount of an alkali.

SIMON KLOSKY. 

